Customer Reviews

Teach Yourself to Play the Folk Harp

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've been playing the folk harp for about three months. I'm already playing several classical pieces. Sylvia Woods' book has been immensely helpful in learning basics like fingering, plucking the strings correctly, and how to place your fingers in advance. Every harp player needs to develop good habits from the start, or it will become a problem later on when trying to play more difficult pieces. Proper placement is emphasized. Get the video if you can - it's helpful to see Ms Woods playing the pieces. She also points out any problematical areas in the video. The two work well together.

If you can find a harp teacher in your area, great! I have a wonderful teacher and we use the book to plan practice sessions and choose the next piece to memorize.

I don't read music (yet), so if you have trouble, just pencil in the names of the notes under the staff and play from that!

I had always wanted to play the harp and two years ago, I finally bought a Harpsicle. Along with my harp, I bought Sylvia Woods's book. Sylvia's wonderful harp suite The Harp of Brandiswhiere was really what made me love the harp so it was only right that I try her book first. I'm glad I did, since after comparing it to other beginner books, I found it to be the best.

The songs in the book are actually songs that I enjoy and want to play. The lowest note is A below middle C and Sylvia has a paragraph on what to do if your harp does not have that note. My harp is 26 strings with C below middle C as the lowest note. I would not suggest anything with a smaller range.

Included in the book are songs like Greensleeves, Scarborough Fair, Sakura, Minstral Boy and Planxty Irwin. Sylvia peppers the text with music theory in managable doses. I already took classical guitar lesson so I knew a little but her notes were still very useful.

Being an adult learner who just wanted a fun and enjoyable hobby, I picked a relaxed teacher and enjoyed myself but she moved away pretty soon after so it was just me and Sylvia. I am happy to say that it worked out beautifully. I can play many of the songs in this book and am really enjoying myself. It's a cliche, but my only secret was practicing every day and always trying to improve on what I played the day before. Don't be scared, you can teach yourself this lovely instrument, you just have to be willing to work.

My only complaint is that the left hand is introduced later than I would have liked. By holding off, it makes it seem much harder than it really is. But that is a minor quibble for such a good lesson book.

The book is almost thirty years old and written in a time when there was not as much interest in the folk harp so naturally the presentation is less than pristine but for goodness sake, isn't it better to have a slightly less pretty book with good material instead of a lovely book that teaches you nothing? It's a no-brainer for me. And, yes, this book was written with the beginner in mind. That's exactly what I wanted.

As with any beginner book, no matter what the subject, it's a good idea to get a "second opinion", another beginner book to compare with.

In conclusion, I couldn't be happier with this book and I cheerfully recommend it to anyone interested in playing the folk harp.

This book is a good place to start if you have never before touched a harp. It starts at the beginning, and has a great deal of basic info (such as how to replace strings, which I use all the time!) The music is simple, but below the needs of people with knowledge of music theory, or piano experience.

It has all a newcomer needs for starting with the folk harp. Positions, musical notation, and lots of songs of increasing difficulty, instead of boring exercises. The presentation looks old and outdated, although it gives it some charm. I recommend it.

Very helpful beginner's book, featuring some lovely melodies and useful advice. The spiral binding is an asset in this sort of instruction book. Ask me in six or eight months whether I've learned enough to play my Celtic harp!

I've learned to play a variety of musical instruments, primarily on my own, so I was excited to find a book purporting to help me learn folk harp without a teacher. This book has been very good so far, although I have had to supplement my knowledge with some digging on the internet, particularly when it comes to tuning, hand position, and using the sharping levers. I like the pace of the book. It doesn't spend an overly long time on basic excercises and you get to plunge right in to playing simple songs ... and they're different than the same old "yankee doodle" songs that most books make you wade through before getting to the "real" songs (the ones that sound impressive when you play them for your friends). I'm not sure how well I would have done with this book if I had not already been familiar with reading music, though. It does go over the basics, but it quickly moves into reading two staffs simultaneously, something that can be challenging for people that are just starting to learn to read music. The excercises that are included are very helpful for developing finger coordination in preparation for new skills that you will need in upcoming songs, so everything is very well targeted to work together. I will say that some of the hand-drawn music notes can be a little bit hard to read (but not impossible). Also, some of the fingering is very strange to me. That could just be because I have been a pianist for so many years. I just go through the song a few different times and choose a fingering structure that feels natural to me, and just ignore her suggestions on this. For folk song enthusiasts, this book is a veritable treasure trove, containing both well-known favorites and plenty of lesser-known melodies that you will love. I look forward to finishing this book and being able to choose from some of Sylvia's many other songbooks arranged for folk harp. Oh, one other note: I am playing with a harp that contains 3 full octaves; this book does call for about 4 or 5 notes below my lowest note ... something that could have been helpful to know when choosing what harp to purchase. I will be buying one with additional strings in the future.

Book is in black and white format. Some colour would have been nice.Spiral binding means it sits on the music stand well without falling shut. More suitable for adults to use than for school students.Useful bracketing on where to place fingers before playing. Print is on the smaller side. Content looks very good indeed. Good low-priced book.

I am easily learning to play the harp with this book. Although I could already read music from playing piano, it is straightforward, and the pictures of how to properly hold your hands and fingers really helps. Sylvia Woods is very well thought of in the harp world.

There are not enough words to describe how I feel about this lesson book and DVD. I'm am so very greatful to Sylvia Woods for making such an easy to learn, easy to follow, easy to practice lesson plan. WOW! A dream come true for sure.
If you have ever wondered what it would be like if you could play the harp... Wonder no longer! Do yourself a favor. Make a dream come true for youself and get this lesson plan with the DVD.
When I'm ready to move up in my studies and buy a larger harp, I'll be traverling to Sylvia's Harp center in Southern CA to give her a BIG hug and make my purchace. Can't wait! Enjoy the sweet music my friends.
God Bless.

I searched for a harp tutorial but they all left me with the feeling that I could never learn the harp on my own until I found Sylvia Woods book. I could read and understand it. It is written so clearly that a novice, such as me, can actually understand and follow the instructions.

It is so exciting to finally be able to play the Celtic harp! I recently bought her DVD as a companion and I am so delighted with Sylvia's tutorials! they really work! I am actually playing songs without any other instruction.